Here are 3 companies whose valuations have been on the slide, but which, I think, have strong long-term prospects. I expect their share prices to bounce back as investors warm to them.
One is a bank, another is a building firm, and the third is a financial broker. Could they be three comeback kings?
A lot to be hopeful about
I have written many times about the trials and tribulations of the UK banks in recent years. Not only have they had to deal with the aftermath of the Credit Crunch, both in terms of the accumulation of bad debt and the severe reputational damage, but also they have had to transform themselves to face a future where people increasingly bank not through High Street branches but through websites and smart phone apps.
What’s more, a backdrop of a deflationary world, where interest rates stay permanently low, means that the multi-billion profits that the banks made pre-2008 are likely to be a thing of the past.
And yet, there is a lot for Lloyds (LSE: LLOY) to be hopeful about. A resurgent British economy still continues to create more jobs, and companies are still doing well. And the housing market is on the up.
Lloyds is one of this country’s leading retail banks, and it is the number one mortgage provider. There won’t be an overnight turnaround, but I predict profitability will steadily recover, and the share price will rise.
Fundamentally cheap
Building and infrastructure services company Carillion (LSE: CLLN) has seen its share price tumble in recent months. Yet this is a firm that not only is consistently churning out profits year-on-year, but is growing earnings as well. The 2013 earnings-per-share (EPS) of 23.20p is set to increase to 37.30p by 2017. That is an impressive rate of growth, yet the fundamentals look very cheap.
The 2016 P/E ratio is just 7.82, with a dividend yield of 7.29%. So this a highly profitable business that is both a growth and an income play.
A booming Britain, with a growing population, means that there will be a whole range of infrastructure projects in the pipeline. That means a steady stream of business for Carillion over the next few years. This is one to tuck away in your high-yield portfolio.
Consistently profitable
Tullett Prebon (LSE: TLPR) is an interdealer broker whose share price has been on the slide. But, apart from a dip in earnings in 2014, it has been consistently profitable.
Like Carillion, I think this is an undervalued company and, at some point, the share price will catch up with the inherent value of this firm.
The fundamentals show just how cheap Tullett Prebon is. The 2016 P/E ratio is just 10.06, and the dividend yield is a very appealing 5.09%.
This company does a lot of business with investment and commercial banks. I believe these banks will strengthen in years to come as equity markets around the world steadily recover, and this will mean there will be an increasing amount of work for brokers such as Tullett. So I see this firm as a good long-term investment.